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WILLIAM G. RULE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y. Letters Patent No. 61,265, dated January 15, 1867.

IMPROVED LEGGINGS.

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'IU ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it knownthat I, WILLIAM G. RULE, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain 1 ew and useful improvements in the manufacture of Leggings, which I- denominate as spatterdashes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full description of the same.

The object of my invention is to supersede, to a certain extent, the use of military high-top boots; second, to afford a covering to the legsof pedestrians or equestrians to protect them from the weather and spatteriug of mud to soil the bottom of pantaloons, whether in walking or riding; and third, to makethe leggings easily and readily adjustable to the legs of the wearer by means of an elastic metal frame, wherebythey may be put on or taken 01T almost instantly without the-intervention of straps and buckles or buttons and button-holes. And thenature of my invention consists in combining, with the legging or covering of leather, or other substance used, an elastic metal frame, so as to spring round or clasp the leg of the wearer at the ankle,.and above the calf' of the leg, and be supported in such relative positions by means of side bars, so as to keep the legging or spattcr-dash securely in its place on the leg.

But to describe my invention more particularly, I will refer to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this speoication, the same letters of reference, wherever they occur, referring to like parts.

Figure l is a view of the legging or spatter-dash, as applied to the leg.

Figure 2 is a side view of the spatterdash.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the elastic metal frame on which the spatter-dash is secured.

Letter a represents the spatter-dash, which is composed of leather, and of such a shape as to form a coml pletc'covering for the leg `belowthe knee, and so shaped as to come down over the instep of the boot and heel c as to-make a perfect covering of the parts, and in which position it is` held bye. strap, d, under the instep. It will be obvious that the leggings may be made of cloth, India rubber, skins of animals, "and other suitable materials, and therefore I do not limit my invention to any particular material, but intend it to apply to any and all of the materials or fabrics suitable for such purposes. It will be obvious, also, that the legging may be made so as to extend'above the knee. I, therefore, desire it to be understood that` I do not limit myself` to the exact length of th'e leggings herein described, but intend to make them shorter or longer, as the trade may demand. For the purpose of securing the spatten-dash to the leg, I secure it to a frame, of spring steel or'other suitable metal, composed of an ankle and knee-band e and These bands are open at their ends, and united to side braces g and L, also formed of tempered steel.l The objects of these side braces are, first, to sustain the bands in their relative places at the ankle and top of the leggings; and, second, to' keep the legging up, and, at the same time, to keep the edges of the overlaps of the leggings closed smoothly and tightly upon the leg. This is effected by the bands being made somewhat of a scroll shape before* tempering therri, so that when secured to the spatter-dashfi either lby stitching or other means, they will clasp round the leg with great rmness, and, in connection with the instep strap, keep it rmlyin its place. It will be obvious that, though generally designed for mens wear, yet they are of inestimable value to ladiesy to protect their legs from the wet and mud when walking in wet weather, and I therefore design to make the spatter-dashes as well for them as for men.

Having now .described my invention, I'will proceed to set forth what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United-States. I

I claim the combination of the elastic metal frame, substantially as described, with the covering of the same, whether made of leather or other material, for the purpose of making spatter-dashes, as set forth.

\ WM. e. RULE.

Witnesses: v

J. H. MUNsoN, C. L. BARRETT. 

